ATS Applauds Falls Church for School Bus Safety Program

ATS Applauds Falls Church for Effort in School Bus Safety Program

Tempe, AZ — American Traffic Solutions (ATS) commends its client, the Falls Church Police Department, for receiving the ASIS International 2015 Community Policing Award, recognizing the collaborative efforts of police, community and vendor to improve safety with a school bus stop arm camera program using ATS’ CrossingGuard system.

“ATS is extremely pleased to see Falls Church receive this honor, and to be recognized for our role in the program. Most of all, we’re honored to know that our efforts as vendor helped the police department initiate a change to improve safety for children. CrossingGuard school bus safety cameras help authorities enforce the traffic laws requiring vehicles to stop for children boarding and departing school buses,” ATS president and Chief Operating Officer David Roberts said. “The award honors everyone involved.”

The award gives special mention to Falls Church Police Capt. Rick Campbell and Lt. Pilar Uelmen, Falls Church City Public Schools bus transportation supervisor Nancy Hendrickson, community safety advocate Stephanie Oppenheimer, Falls Church City School Board member Kieran Sharpe and ATS Director of Account Manager Charles Turner, for their individual roles in taking the program from idea to reality.

“Each of their collective input combined built a comprehensive credible system of safety that has paved a smooth path for others to follow and has left a legacy of best practices. Where each team member is a champion in their individual respective roles, their collective effort is the definition of community policing at its best,” the city’s award application states.

Falls Church began its stop-arm enforcement program in on Oct. 28, 2013 with six school buses equipped with ATS CrossingGuard camera systems. The devices capture images of vehicle license plates as the vehicle illegally passes school buses that are stopped to let children on and off the bus. Authorities issued 808 school bus stop arm passing violations in 2014. In previous years, police wrote 10 violations a year on average.

“There is no question that this program is a force multiplier, it has set a precedent for administrative excellence and is building a culture of safety in the geographical footprint of the City of Falls Church,” the city’s award application states.

About American Traffic Solutions:ATS is proud to be the market leader in road safety camera installations in North America. ATS has more than 3,200 installed red-light, speed and school bus stop arm safety cameras serving more than 30 million people in the nation. ATS has contracts in nearly 300 communities in 20 states and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit: www.atsol.com or www.PlatePass.com. To view video that serves as a chilling reminder of the dangers that red-light runners present to our family and children; visit ATS on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/user/ATSRoadSafety.